Wrangell St. Elias National Park
is the largest national park in the United States and one of the
least visited. Most visitors to the park spend time in the Kennicott
- McCarthy area. Kennicott was a rich copper mine in the early
1900's, and a bustling community was created by the Kennicott Copper
Company. The mine and the town were abandoned in the late 1930's,
and Kennicott and its sister town, McCarthy have had just a few
dozen permanent residents since.

Today, Wrangell St. Elias
National Park, Kennicott and McCarthy are among Alaska's
best kept secrets, with spectacular scenery and great
adventure activities, including river rafting, hiking and
glacier treks, ice climbing, flightseeing and historical
tours of the old Kennicott Mill building. In addition, the
towns offer a truly Alaskan experience; a small town in the
middle of a vast wilderness, but with great hospitality and
some of Alaska's most friendly people.

Places To Eat –

For a small town, Kennicott and
McCarthy offer some very good options for meals. McCarthy Lodge
offers full service dining. Guests at Ma Johnson's Hotel enjoy a
full American breakfast here every morning. In Kennicott, Kennicott
Glacier Lodge offers family-style meals for guests. In McCarthy, The
Potato offers meals to eat in or to go.

Places to Stay –

Lodging choices in the Kennicott
and McCarthy area are limited to two very nice properties: Kennicott
Glacier Lodge and Ma Johnson's Hotel. Kennicott Glacier Lodge is
located among the historic buildings in Kennicott itself. Ma
Johnson's Hotel in McCarthy was a rooming house in its early days,
and has been restored and furnished with furniture and artifacts
from the original townsite. Walking into the lobby is like stepping
back to 1920.

Geography –

Wrangell St. Elias National Park
is in the southeastern part of mainland Alaska, and stretches from
the Gulf of Alaska and Copper River, east and north to the Canadian
Border. The land is dominated by the Wrangell Mountains and its
numerous volcanic peaks. These peaks are heavily glaciated, and a
significant portion of the park is covered by permanent icefields
and glaciers.

McCarthy and Kennicott are on the southeast edge
of Kennicott Glacier, which flows off the slopes of Mt. Blackburn. The glacier itself flows past both towns,
ending just a few hundred yards from the center of McCarthy. Just
upstream from Kennecott, the Root Glacier flows into the
Kennicott Glacier, and guided hikes are available on the ice
itself. The meltwater from the glacier forms a large lake,
and guests can sit on the shores and watch ice and boulders
tumble into the lake. The lake empties into the Kennicott River, and guests to
McCarthy and Kennicott must cross a footbridge across the river to
get to town.

Climate –

Much of Wrangell
St. Elias National Park is covered in glaciers, and the climate is
more or less unchanged since the ice age. However, glaciers in the
park area are for the most part retreating, just as they are in most
of the world. The portions of the park at lower elevations have
climates that are very typical of Alaska. Interior portions are
relatively dry with warm summers and cold winters. Coastal sections
are cool and moist all year. McCarthy and Kennicott are in the
interior regions, with temperatures typically in the 60's and low
70's in the summer. Winter temperatures can get as cold as -40F.
Snow begins falling in late September or October, and lasts on the
ground until May.